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hints, which compofed the elegy, and directing them to one principal view; and fupperadding a perfonal addrefs, he became the author of what is here ftyled the Elegiac epiftle; beautiful models of which we have in his HEROIDES, and the Epifles from PONTUS. We fee then the difference of this from the didactic form. They have both one principal end and point in view. But the Didactic, being of a cooler and more fedate turn, pursues its defign uniformly and connects eafily. The Elegiac, on the contrary, whose end is emotion, not inflruction, hath all the abruptness of irregular difordered paffion. It catches at remote and distant hints, and starts at once into a digreffive train of thinking, which it requires fome degree of enthusiafin in the reader to follow.

Further than this it is not material to my prefent defign to pursue this fubject. More exact ideas of the form and conftitution of this epiftle, must be fought in that beft example of it, the natural Roman poet. It may only be observed of the different qualities, neceffary to those, who afpire to excel in thefe two fpecies; that, as the one would make an impreffion on the heart, it can only do this by means of an exquifite fenfibility of nature and elegance of mind; and that the other, attempting in the most inoffenfive manner, to inform the head, muft demand, to the

full

3

full accomplishment of its purpose, fuperior good fenfe, the widest knowledge of life, and, above all, the politeness of a confummate address. That the former was the characteristic of OVID's genius hath been observed, and is well known. How far the latter defcription agrees to HORACE, can be no fecret to those of his readers who have any share, or conception, of these talents themfelves. But matter, of this nicer kind are properly the objects, not of criticism, but of fentiment. Let it fuffice then to examine the poet's practice, so far only, as we are enabled to judge of it by the ftandard of the preceding rules.

III. These rules are reducible to three. 1. that there be an unity in the fubject. 2. a connexion in the method: and, 3. that fuch connexion be easy. All which I fuppose to have been religiously observed in the poet's conduct of this, i. e. the didactic epiftle. For,

[1.] The fubject of each epiftle is one that is, one fingle point is profecuted through the whole piece, notwithstanding that the address of the poet, and the delicacy of the subject, may fometimes lead him through a devious tract to it. Had his interpreters attended to this practice, fo confonant to the rule of nature before explained, they could never have found an art of poetry in the epiftle, we are about to examine.

[2.] This

[2.] This one point, however it hath not been feen [e], is conftantly purfued by an uniform, confiftent method; which is never more artificial, than when leaft apparent to a careless, inattentive reader. This fhould have ftimulated his learned critics to feek the connexion of the poet's own ideas, when they magifterially fet themselves to tranfpofe or vilify his method.

[3] This method is every where fufficiently clear and obvious; proceeding if not in the stricteft forms of difpofition, yet, in an easy, elegant progrefs, one hint arifing out of another, and infenfibly giving occafion to fucceeding ones, juft as the cooler genius of this kind required. This, laftly, fhould have prevented those, who have taken upon themselves to criticize the art of poetry by the laws of this poem, from concealing

[e] J. Scaliger fays, Epiflolas, Græcorum more, Pho cylide atque Theognidis [Horatius] fcripfit: præceptis philofophice divulfis minimeque inter fe cohærentibus. And of this Epittle, in particular, he prefumes to fay, De Arte queres quid fentiam. Quid? Equidem quod de Arte fine arte tradita. And to the fame purpose another great Critic; Non folum antiquorum irrotxas in moralibus hoc habuere, ut ánoλebíar non fervarent, fed etiam alia de quibufcunque rebus præcepta. Sic Epiftola Horati} ad Pijones de Poëtica perpetuum ordinem feriemque NULLAM habet'; fed ab uno præcepto ad aliud tranfilit, quamvis NULLA fit materiæ affinitas ad fenfum connectendum. Salmafii Not. in Epictetum et Simplicium, p. 13. Lugd. Bat. 1640.]

their ignorance of its real views under the cover of such abrupt and violent tranfitions, as might better agree to the impaffioned elegy, than to the fedate didactic epiftle.

To fet this three-fold character, in the fulleft light, before the view of the reader, I have attempted to explain the Epistle to the Pifos, in the way of continued commentary upon it. And, that the coherence of the feveral parts may be the more diftin&tly feen, the Commentary is rendered as concife as poffible; fome of the finer and lefs obvious connexions being more carefully observed and drawn out in the notes.

For the kind of interpretation itself, it must be allowed, of all others, the fitteft to throw light upon a difficult and obfcure fubject, and, above all, to convey an exact idea of the scope and order of any work. It hath, accordingly, been fo confidered by feveral of the foreign, particularly the ITALIAN, critics; who have effayed long fince to illuftrate, in this way, the very piece before us. But he fuccefs of thefe foreigners is, I am fenfible, a flender recommendation of their method. I chufe therefore to reft on the fingle authority of a great author, who, in his edition of our English Horace, the best that ever was given of any claffic, hath now retrieved and established the full credit of it. What was the amufement of his pen, becomes,

indeed,

indeed, the labour of inferior writers. Yet, on thefe unequal terms, it can be no difcredit to have aimed at some resemblance of one of the leaft of those merits, which fhed their united honours on the name of the illuftrious friend and commentator of Mr. PoPE.

Q. HO

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